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Promoting Intellectual Quality with an IWB (Interactive Whiteboard)

In 2012 I experienced my first teaching observation in a Catholic primary school. I was shocked to see how much it had changed in comparison to my personal experience in primary school, 10 years ago. The biggest change I had noticed was the technology used, the biggest being the IWB. From what I had observed, the IWB has incredibly enhanced the student’s engagement with the topics, allows for discussions and critical thinking. The IWB software ActiveInspire allows teachers to bring their lessons to life. Here is a link to look further into the ActiveInspire Software and its abilities: http://www.prometheanworld.com/us/english/education/products/classroom-software/activinspire/

It is important to remember that IWB’s are a tool of teaching, and do not replace teachers. If they are used in the right, they can have an enormous benefit to students and teachers. These are the reasons why, supported by Kent, 2009:

IWB’s allow students to extend their knowledge through experiences rather than through reading and listening

It provides students with information that can be influenced and controlled and manipulated by them, which leads them to understand real-life situations and leads to rich class discussions and deep thinking

Students can easily discover and investigate in lessons and find the IWB easy to relate with and use

It is an dynamic, engaging and appealing learning environment

It can be used to by the teacher in many ways to understand students learning and progression

Students gain a deep understanding through its ability to promote higher order thinking